Konaha's Sword Mistress
by Konoha's Black Dragon
Summary: A stranger travels to Konaha with business for the Hokage to find Naruko beaten in an alley. He then decides to adopt and teach the blond the ways of the sword. Rated M for language, death, gore, and a possibility of lemons. Down for maintenence, will be reposted as "Konoha's Sword Mistress: Remake"
1. Chapter 1

I don't own Naruto, I never have and very likely never will.

"Talking"

'Thinking'

**"Demon/Summon Talking"**

Two chunnin stood guarding the gates of the Hidden Leaf Village bored out of their wits at their duty. "Man why do we always get stuck guarding the gates in the middle of the night?" the taller of the two asked his fellow guard.

"Maybe it's because you suck so much at everything they decided to give you something you can't fuck up," came the sleepy reply.

"Ha, ha, very funny," the first replied to the teasing, before sighing, "Well at least the rain stopped, something's more likely to happen now."

As if on cue a shape materialized out of the shadows created by the trees, covered by a cloak and carrying a massive sword on its back the person kept walking towards them as if they weren't there. Startled the taller guard looked at his sensor comrade silently asking her a question. The reply was a negative shake of her head as she studied the person. The first guard then stepped forward and shouted at the person, "Halt. State your name and business in Konoha!" The person stopped, then after a slight pause reached up and pulled back the hood revealing a worn face, pale under the moon light. Deep blue eyes stared at them intently as he stood before the gate studying them before answering.

"I'm here to see the Hokage."

The guards looked at him for a brief spell before saying, "Let me see your papers." The man wordlessly handed over a small booklet, which they studied for a moment while conferring between each other. While they were doing that a roar sounded deep in the forest, causing the man to spin around, holding the hilt of his massive sword as he stared out into the forest, a growl issuing forth from him. The two guards looked at him as he crouched, ready to fight, for a full minute, before turning around and facing them, relaxing from the call.

"Well everything is order; my partner here will escort you to the Hokage's tower." The first guard said as he handed back the booklet. Nodding the man accepted back the booklet before fallowing the female guard through the gate into Konoha.

Walking on the strange man's right she studied him as they traversed the streets. After a while she asked, "What was that about?" referring to his reaction to the roar.

"Everyone has their demons," was all she got out of him.

They continued in silence and all that was heard was the dripping water falling off sodden roofs for a while before a whimpering caught the man's attention. Stopping he cocked his head trying to find out where the sound was coming from. The guard noticed his absence and turned around to see him disappear into an alley. Running after him she got to the mouth of the alley in time to see him squat down and look in a discarded cardboard box at a small girl whose blond hair looked brown from the dirt and dried blood in it. Her clothes showed as much as they covered with many of the holes showing blood at the edges. She cowered from the man cradling a broken arm as she tried to become as small as possible. The guard called out to him, "Sir, for your health, I implore you to step away from the demon."

The man looked at her with loathing in his eyes, "Demon? There is no demon here." Then, ignoring her continued babbling about how dangerous the demon is, he turned back to the girl and cooed at her, "Shhh, I'm not going to hurt you, now let me see that arm." Gently he pulled her out of the soaked box and put her on his lap, then he held up her arm so he could see it better to a pained moan from the girl. His hands lightly flowed over her skin around the break. After a moment he stopped then looking into her pain glazed blue eyes he said, "This is going to hurt like hell for a moment then all the pain will go away. Do you think you can tough it out for me like a big girl?" Comforted by the calm aura the man had and eagerly looking forward to the end of the pain, the blond nodded. Suddenly a slight snap was heard in the alley and the little girl screamed in pain as the man rebroke her arm then after setting it straight his right hand glowed a soft gold before wrapping around her arm at the brake. The girl stopped screaming as the pain abated then passed out in his arms. Standing the man looked to the guard whose eyes were wide open and growled,"Take me to the Hokage." Scared the woman merely nodded and continued through the town. After seeing his nonchalants about healing a wound that would incapatate most medic nins she quieted herself and continued thought the town not saying a word about the girl he now carried.

The guard left after showing the man to the Hokage's antechamber where she told the secretary that the man wanted to see the Hokage. The secretary pressed a button and spoke into the intercom, "Hokage-sama, there's a man here to see you."

"Send him in" came the curt reply. She then waved the man through a door to the left of her desk.

Upon entering he stopped as the door closed behind him, taking in the room. The only note worthy objects in the room was a couch to the side of the office, a bookshelf directly across from it, four portraits of different men to the door side of the book shelf, and a worn desk covered in piles of paperwork. Behind the desk was a large leather chair in which an old man sat giving out the windows that made up the back wall of the office, smoking his pipe. After a moment of silence the Third turned around to see the man putting the girl down on the couch gently before taking of his sword and leaned it up against the wall by the couch, then taking of his cloak he flung it at one of the two chairs in front of the desk, revealing another four swords. A bastard sword hung from his left hip while a gladius (1) hung from his left hip. Across the back of his waste two swords of similar length to the gladius were strapped to his belt in a way that suggested they were meant to be wielded in a reverse grip. Finally looking up at the Hokage he asked, "Who is she and what has she done to warrant such hatred?"

The Third sighed and sucked up another drag from his pipe before answering. "That is Naruko Uzumaki, the Jinjuriki of the Kyuubi no Kitsune."

"Well that explains the use of the word demon." The man muttered, shaking his head. "Do you know who I am?"

The Third nodded, "Not personally, but the Forth talked you on occasion."

The man looked back down at the girl, then suddenly said loudly, "Jiraiya, if you're going to eavesdrop, ether do it so no one notices or actually enter the room and be a part of the conversation."

A widow slid open as said man entered, "Paul, I never expected to see you again. What brings you here?"

The now named man looked at him and answered, "The dragon council decided in all its wisdom that I must come here and capture the Kyuubi. However I see it has been sealed in this here girl and thus I am charged with guarding her here or taking her with me back to the council."

Jiraiya snorted then asked, "What would the dragon council want with a demon? Aren't they enemies?"

"Normally yes, we are. However with the emergence of Akatsuki the council has decided it is no longer acceptable to allow the tailed demons to wander the world free."

* * *

(1) A gladius a short sword between 12" to 18" in length, this is the sword that gave the Roman gladiators their name


	2. Chapter 2

Suddenly Naruko started stirring from her unconscious state, muttering something about crazy medics. Instantly, all attention focused on her and Paul went down to a knee by the couch as if to appear less threatening to her when she awoke. After all waking up from unconsciousness, after being put there (even if indirectly), to find an armed man standing above you is cause for alarm.

Piercing blue eyes opened, flitting around the room to rest on the man nearest her, supprised to find a kind smile on his face.

"Hey, Old Man, what am I doing here?"

Sarutobi gestured at the man kneeling next to the couch saing, "This man here, who goes by the name of Paul, found you in an alley and after healing you brought you here."

The young girl's expression turned to one of suprise."Why would you do something so nice to me?" Naruko asked addressing the now named Paul.

"Why would you expect anything else?" He countered.

"Everyone else beats me," she said quietly, looking downtrodden, "nobody but Old Man Hokage and Ero-sennin over there and a few of the Anbu have ever shown me kindness. And the worst part is I can't figure out what I did to make every one hate me. Why don't you hate me?"

"Why should I hate you? You have done nothing wrong. The villagers hate you for what you carry." At this point Sarutobi started to say something only for Paul to keep on talking like the old Kage's thoughts weren't worth stopping for.

"On the day you were born a great beast known as the Nine Tailed Fox Demon attacked Konoha, leaving hundreds dead in its wake. The only reason this town is still hear is because of the Forth, your father, sacrificed himself to seal the demon into you." Naruko's mouth dropped open, stunned at the implications of what he had said.

"Now as to why he would pick his only child, his daughter who is not even a day old, are quite simple. One, he couldn't ask someone else to give up their child when he wouldn't, for that would look bad on him as a leader. Remember that a good leader leads by example as well as words. Two, you were the only child born that day, and if the baby is more than a day old not only the chances that the child will die from the sealing, but also the greater the chances of the seal failing and thus releasing the Fox into the world, where it would undoubtedly continue where it left off in destroying the village. Three, he trusted the village to see you as the jail of the Fox, not the fox itself, which shows the naivety of the man. That's one of the few flaws that the Minato had, but it was his greatest. And four, he trusted you above all others to keep the demon sealed, for the seal only works as long as the jailer of the demon wills it to be sealed away."

Silence reigned in the room as Naruko contemplated all she had just heard. Meanwhile Jiraiya, looked on with a slightly troubled expression, and Sarutobi glared at Paul, livid that his wishes had been completely ignored in this matter; his teeth clenched so hard it was amazing that he didn't bite off the stem of his pipe.

"You said my dad was Minato, the Fourth Hokage. Do you know who my mother is?" Naruko asked hopefully, breaking the scilence as she did.

Paul shook his head sorrowfully at her, "Your mother was a woman by the name of Kushina Uzumaki. She was the last of the Uzumaki clan and the only known survivor of the destruction of Uzugakure during the Third Great Shinobi War. While her body has never been found, she is believed to be dead."

"Why wasn't I told of my parents? Old Man, why did you say that you didn't know who my parents were?" Naruko asked, tears falling as she realized the sheer magnitude of the betrayal of trust the old Kage had committed.

"He did it for your protection. For while the villagers might have not beaten you knowing that you are the daughter of the beloved Fourth, there are people out there who would have stopped at nothing to see you dead upon learning of you heritage." Paul answered, stepping in as Sarutobi floundered for an answer that would have started to heal the chasm that had opened between him and Naruko.

"Why do they hate me?"

"It's not you they hate. It's your father. He killed hundreds of Iwa ninja with his Flying Thunder God technique. Just like how the villagers here want to get revenge on the Fox for nearly destroying the village and killing hundreds, the people of Iwa want to get revenge on Minato, and sense he is out of their reach they'll go after the next best target in their minds, you."

"Why is it everyone hates me?"

"There are many who don't hate you. Sarutobi over there loves you like a granddaughter. Jiraiya… I'm not actually sure on his feelings but he saw your father as his son, so I'd imagine that he also sees you as a granddaughter. And while I don't love you, you are one of the few people with my respect, because not only did you not become what the villagers believed you to be, you strove to gain their respect and trust."

Naruko had a thoughtful look on her face, studding the man before her. He had been nothing but honest with her, at least to the best of her knowledge. (You don't survive in a hostile world without becoming suspicious of things, not to mention she had just been betrayed by the one person she trusted completely.)

"How do you know so much?" she asked, curious as to how he had not only such detailed information on the world but also had knowledge of her own thoughts and feelings.

"That is an excellent question that we're all interested in hearing the answer to." Jiraiya said. "Not only do you have knowledge of village secrets, but also speak of things I have just found out about with familiarity."

His reply could only be described as cryptic.

"The trees speak to me in the rustling of their leaves. The wind whispers in my ear the secrets spoken. The earth stands mute witness to the acts of all that travel upon it and tells me of the world."


	3. Chapter 3

Sarutobi sighed, "Why do I get the feeling that we aren't going to get a more precise answer out of you?"

"Because you're experienced in the ways of answer dodging, having to deal with an elected council and all" Paul said before pulling out a sheaf of papers and handing them to the old Kage. "These are the adoption papers, I don't give a damn about the opinions of the council, I'm not a citizen of Konoha or a member of its shinobi therefore they can't do a thing about the adoption if you approve. Also I'd appreciate the directions to the Namikazi compound."

Sarutobi looked over the papers before signing them. Then he got up to look out the windows at the glow in the eastern sky, taking a long drag on his pipe before looking at Jiraiya. "You're the only seal expert in Konoha right now so show them to the compound, and good luck getting in."

This caused Jiraiya to grumble about power abusive kages before getting up from the chair he was in and leading Naruko out the door while Paul started swearing at him as he gathered up his stuff to fallow.

Out on the streets they were treated to the sight of a waking town. The first pedestrians were scurrying about their business. No one spared the group of three a second glance during their early morning rush. The further along they went the fewer people there were as they got further into the residential part of Konoha. Soon even the houses started to become scarce as they kept going until they were out of the village proper and only lines on paper said they were still in The Village Hidden in the Leaves. Finally they came upon a wall enclosed property with a large gate that had a piece of paper saying **Seal. **The walls were covered in crazy designs in red, black, and gold that looked like the only way they could be repeated would be to throw cans of paint at the wall and the only recognizable pattern was were the colors meet at the piece of paper. Paul gave out a whistle after looking at the seal.

"Well that's interesting; I wonder why he designed such a seal." Looking closer at the seal he burst out laughing. "It's just a three part blood seal!"

Jiraiya grunted at this, "Do explain why Naruko's blood didn't open the door then."

"One, it takes blood around 90 degrees Fahrenheit to unlock the seal. Two, it requires three different peoples' blood. Three, the door will only open with consent of the owner of the property, which is currently Naruko. Any more dumb questions?"

"When did you become a seal expert?"

"Never, I just taught him the basics to make this one."

"Will you be so kind as to explain it then?"

"Not to you. Come lets open the door to see Naruko's new home shall we?"

With this he took out a knife and cut open his thumb and rubbed it across the gold part of the seal saying, "Gold for the kin of dragons."

He then turned to Jiraiya and said, "Black for the guardian." He nodded, and then bit his thumb wiping the blood over the black part of the seal.

Paul then turned to Naruko and gestured her forward. After walking close enough to reach out and touch the gate, Paul handed her the knife saying, "Wipe your blood over the red part, for red is blood and stands for such." She cut open a finger and spread her blood over the red paint.

Suddenly the colors swirled before coming to a halt as the paper burned off, opening the gate to the three. Before them stretched a perfectly immaculate lawn with a path running from the gate to a statue of Minato and Kushina located half way across the lawn where the path split in three. Turning left, the path headed south to training fields. Turning right, the path headed to gardens. While directly in front of the gate stood and immense mansion, standing four stories tall and stretching more than one hundred yards from end to end.

"Fancy." Paul said as he walked down the path. "Come Naruko, the door has another blood seal on it."

Suddenly Naruko sprinted past him and opened the door before Paul or Jiraiya got there and was inside exploring her new home in all of five seconds, much to the amusement of the older two.

She came running out of the house a second later, screaming; setting the two men on guard.

"What's the matter?"

From behind Paul's leg she answered, "There's a really ugly thing in there, and it's covered in warts."

"Hiya, Jiraiya-sama. Why was the Namikazi compound opened?" A toad asked from the front step.

"It speaks!" Naruko whispered to Paul and Jiraiya.

"That is an ugly thing." Paul said to Naruko, quietly so only she could hear. She giggled.

"To answer your question, the Namikazi compound has been opened for the heir to the clan, so that she may claim her inheritance." Jiraiya said, much to the toad's confusion.

"But Minato didn't have a child. Did he?"

"Yes he did, but no one would have known for another fourteen years or so if it weren't for the meddling Dragon Council. This young girl here is Naruko Uzumaki-Namikazi, Minato's and Kushina's daughter."

"Hiya, Naruko-chan. How you doing?"

Naruko refused to answer and continued hiding behind Paul's leg, until he dragged her out to his side.

"Now Naruko, you didn't like it when people were rude to you, now did you?" When Naruko shook her head Paul continued, "Then don't be rude to others."

"Hi ugly thing."

Paul shook his head and muttered, "New first lesson, maners."

The toad looked at Naruko like he had just bitten into a piece of rotten fruit. Diciding that ignoring her would be the best course of action he turned back to Jiraiya.  
"The Dragon Council meddles way too much in the affairs of the summon clans, and your totally right about this, Naruko is in no shape to protect herself from the enimies of the Namikazi."

Paul burst out laughing much to the shock of the toad. Flashing slit pupils at the toad, scaring it into a state of petrification.

"That's why I'm here. Did you think the _almighty, most noble Dragon Council_ wouldn't think about the repercussions of their actions?"

Upon receiving a wooden nod from the toad, Paul exploded, "Of course they didn't. That's why we Halflings are always scrambling after every decision by the council. They claim to be wise, and then don't think of anything other than how it would affect them. It's enough to make a person's blood boil."

This was met with various reactions from the group. The toad was stunned that those most revered by the summon clans, were reduced to lackeys by their parents; it was just unthinkable to him. Jiraiya wore a thoughtful look, while staring off into space. Naruko had confusion written all over her face.

"What do you mean? What's a dragon council? What's a halfling and why are you one? Why…"

"Whoa, calm down, I'll answer your questions later but right now let's get you to bed, after all you got next to no sleep last night and you need to rest so that arm can fully recover and won't reopen the break because it didn't heal right." Paul said with a kind smile, and escorted a protesting Naruko upstairs to the bedrooms.

Jiraiya watched them go until he heard the toad speak to him.

"Jiraiya-sama, I need to return to my realm and tell the others about what I've learned. Oh, and Gamabuta-sama will want to speak with you as to why we weren't informed about Minato-boy having a heir."

Jiraiya suddenly looked worried at the prospect of being _questioned_ by an irate chief toad about Minato's daughter.


	4. What is right?

Timeskip 2 months

The evening sunlight slanted through the trees surrounding the Namikazi compound, staining the grounds a rich orange-gold color. Despite all the good things that had happened to her recently Naruko found it hard to let go of the old habits that had helped her survive the last ten years, and as such she rarely slept in her room, often preferring to sleep in one of the small hidey-holes spread around the grounds. However this evening she had a couple of sheets spread out on the roof of the house, next to the dorm window that lead to the room next to the one she was supposed to sleep in. There she sat staring into the setting sun, thinking about the last week.

Her training was not what she expected it to be. First and foremost was the fact that Paul straight up said that he wasn't a good teacher and that she should be expecting a hard next few years. Hard… more like living in hell! Paul had come and woken her at dawn the day after her arrival for a morning run around Konoha. After that he brought her back to the compound for a breakfast that was waiting for them on the table by some strange means that she couldn't figure out. By the time they finished breakfast it was seven. After that he took her into the dojo where he had set up some weight equipment and until nine he showed her several lifts and then had her do them, correcting her form and constantly increasing the weight when he decided that the lift was too easy for her. That was the first two days. After that he started alternating the workouts from "heavy weights" to "speed weights" every other day, the heavy weights days she loaded the bar with whatever weight Paul instructed her to and did the lifts. On the speed weight days Paul set up six or so stations which he had her alternate through every thirty seconds or so with him fallowing her changing each station as she switched to the next one so she didn't do the same lift twice in the twenty minutes the workout lasted. The first time Naruko did the speed weights she collapsed half way through. Paul didn't make her finish the workout, but he did make her finish the rest of the day's training régime.

After the workout Paul would take her out side and work on her agility or speed depending on the day. For the agility exercises he would set up markers in the grass and have her run around in (in her mind) nonsense patterns alternating between berating her about being too slow and encouraging her to work faster. After thirty minutes of that he let her rest for an hour before taking her to a small dirt field where he began instructing her on how to wield a sword. Every day he introduced her to a new weapon of style and then proceeded to teach her the ways of the sword. Making sure she understood and pointing out how all the styles barrowed forms from the other styles. It wasn't until the third day that she saw a katana, or at least a wooden for of one. All the weapons she worked with were wooden.

That thought brought a small smile to her face as she remembered when she found out why the blades are wooden.

Flashback

"Wait here, I'll be back in a second." With that Paul disappeared into a small shed that opened onto the small dirt field Naruko now stood on.

Naruko began looking around the area noticing with interest the stands that framed two sides of the field.

"Catch." That was all the warning she got before a shaped piece of wood was thrown at her.

"Oww, that hurt."

"A good swordsman is ready for anything, anytime. Now pick up your weapon and we'll begin."

She complied and positioned herself into a copy of his stance.

"Ready?"

"Yes."

He lunged forward and struck her hand with a sharp crack. Instantly Naruko dropped her wooden sword and cradled her hand to her chest, falling to her knees in the process. Suddenly she found herself in the dirt, on her back nursing a hurt head.

"Rule one; always hold on to your weapon. Rule two; never fall to your knees. Nothing good ever happened to anyone on their knees. Now get up."

Naruko obediently got up and entered the stance again.

"Don't use that stance. It's designed for a very complicated style that takes years to learn. Stand relaxed with the sword in your dominate hand." Seeing her confused look he sighed, "In the hand you write with."

She complied and for the next minute Paul went about teaching her the correct stance for the style they worked on that day, and then she would be taught the basics of the sword type that he gave her to learn.

At the end of the practice her arms ached and felt live leaden weights, but she never complained for he was teaching her and she so desired to learn.

Flashback end

Sword practice would last until one in the afternoon at which time they would stop for lunch. After lunch he taught her basic math, science, and the history of the Elemental Nations until four at which time Naruko would be instructed in how to better her chakra control and in several basic techniques which she had progressed in satisfactorily the last week. From six to seven Naruko learned about the sealing arts, for which she absorbed at a rate that astounded Paul. At seven dinner was served after which she was allowed to do whatever she wanted until nine. During this time she discovered Paul ran through practices himself against shadow clones in the style that she would work in the next day (she figured that he was brushing up on the technique for it was just to coincidental that he would teach her about that style the next day).

As she sat there musing about her week Paul swept up from behind and sat down beside her to watch the setting sun in silence for awhile.

"How do you feel?" He asked startling her.

Naruko studied him for a moment before answering. "Tired and at the same time hyper. I can't really explain it to well for I've never felt this way before."

He smiled at her and turned back to the setting sun. "You're tired from training but you never want to quit because you feel like what you're learning is too important to stop for anything, even eating or sleeping."

"Yah, something like that." She said, hugging her knees to her chest, watching the sun touch the horizon as it shone the dying day's final gasps of light.

"There's something I want you to learn above everything else I will teach you. It's how to live. Live in the moment but never forget the future by always preparing for it, and never forget the past as too many are cut down because they refuse to learn from their mistakes. Live for something. Have a dream and strive for it. When you reach it and grasp it in your hand find something else to work for because when you aren't taking a step forward, you are falling back. Live by a set of morals that are as clear to others as they are to you, for then you know you are fallowing them. Never let you're morals change for then you are nothing worthwhile and like a smote of dust in the wind. Heading in one direction now but heading in another in mere seconds. When you aren't constant in what you believe no one can trust you and more importantly you can't trust yourself."

He was silent for more than a minute before Naruko realized he had stopped talking. She sat there pondering what he had said realizing the truth behind what he was saying even if she didn't fully understand everything said.

"Paul – sensei, what do you mean 'set of morals?' Wouldn't fallow the laws of the land suffice?"

"Eventually you will travel to a land where the laws spit in the face of everything you believe, and were taught to believe was right yet to them they see you as shiftless vagabond who believes in nothing. Do you continue to fallow what you were taught or do you assimilate yourself to them? Where I was born suicide is considered a cowards way out , some would go so far as to say it is a sin of unfathomable proportions and that only a few other sins are even more vile to commit, yet here suicide is seen as an honorable way to go if you are faced with uncountable obstacles."

Silence once again reigned over them as the sun continued to set. It was well after dark when Paul was standing up to leave.

"What are your morals, sensei?"

He turned and looked at her questioning face, recognizing the will to learn and the yearning to be accepted.

"Half of them you would probably take offense to as the go against things taught here. The other half are as fallows.

Loyalty; never turn your back on a team mate. Help them when they are in need. Never betray them, no matter how small the situation may seem; if they don't believe they can trust you, you will never be allowed to be with them in spirit.

Duty; follow your orders or die trying. Giving up is not an option.

Respect; follow the rules of combat and don't openly criticize the laws of the land; follow them before the public even if you don't agree with them.

Honor; do what you say you will do. Never give your word then go back on it. It will make you untrustworthy. Remember, a cat never goes where his tail doesn't follow.

Personal courage; engage the enemy, take calculated risks. If they are too strong for you, find back up and try again. Be willing to stand for what you believe in no matter what others think or say of you. If you stand strong you will earn their respect even if they hate you.

Integrity; do what you know is right even when you know no one is looking for that is when it matters most.

That is what I live by."

He then left Naruko sitting on the roof staring at the spot the sun set, leaving her mind in turmoil; making it so she decides her own way rather than copying his.


	5. Friendship

Time skip- 2 ½ years

Naruko sat in the classroom, annoyed. Not annoyed at the class itself, in fact, she was rather happy that she hadn't been kicked out of the classroom yet, but annoyed at her adoptive older brother, as she saw him, Paul. Despite the fact that he was centuries old, she felt like he was just a few years older than her, a kind caring presence that knew the problems of a young girl trying to deal with the fact that no one seemed to want to admit the fact that she was even there… which was odd, considering he's a guy.

She let the words of the teacher flow over her, it's not that she hated learning, but she couldn't see the point of being stuck in a classroom, learning why certain ninja were famous. She could already feel her body loosing the conditioning that she had literally shed sweat, blood, and tears for.

She snorted; he was kind yes, but only while off the 'battlefield.' He refused to call it training, and honestly they were barely any similarities between what she was doing and the learning that most kids her age were put through. He seemed to actually be trying to end her life sometimes, but always stopped his movements whenever they were about to break her skin. His skills with a blade were phenomenal. She had seen him take on the Sword Master of Konoha, and win, with his dominate hand tied behind his back. Not only did he win, but he dominated and completely broke the style that Hayate Gekkou had used and defeated him in all of twenty seconds. _Twenty seconds…_while using his off hand.

Suddenly a rush of memories flooded her as her clone popped, letting her know that the prank had been properly set up. The mental feedback was a wonderful thing, letting her know all the things that her clone knew before dispelling…

"I'm an idiot." She muttered, before slamming her head into the desk, unintentionally drawing the attention of all in the classroom. She ignored them, letting them think whatever they wanted to of her actions. Naruko sat still,trying to push attention away from herself until her prank was realized, and then she would sneak off at the next possible second. She waited for a couple of hours until the lunch bell rang, before she came to suspect that one of the Hokage's messengers was waiting outside of the door for her, so as soon as the bell rang she opened one of the windows, and straddled the windowsill only to halt her motions as she heard the voice of her only friend.

"What are you doing, Naru-chan?" Hinata never stuttered around Naruko anymore, having grown comfortable with the other girl after their friendship started.

"Leaving before they catch me," came the reply as Naruko swung her other leg over the sill.

"How, we are on the third floor? Are you going to try and jump? You might break something!" Hinata's voice showed her concern as much as her words did, as they waivered in tone and rose at the end in shock and worry.

Naruko looked at her lavender eyed friend.

"Don't you know how to walk on walls?"

When Hinata shook her head, she felt her hand taken and dragged to the window.

"Time for you to learn then."

Hinata's face flooded red when she found her face between Naruko's breasts and their bodies pressed up against each other's as she felt herself basically laying on Naruko, with the only thing holding the two of them up was Naruko's chakra control… That thought was enough to drive away any others as she listened to Naruko's impromptu lesson. It took her a couple of minutes to learn the idea but they were at the bottom before she actually took her entire body weight onto her own feet.

"Come on, let's get out of here."

That was all that was needed to be said, and Hinata followed her. Naruko was actually surprised by that as the last time they had done something like this Hinata had gotten into a lot of trouble, not that Naruko hadn't, but there was only so much that the Hokage could do to discipline her. The place that Naruko lead Hinata to wasn't actually very far, but it was a very secluded spot. A gasp of surprise came out of Hinata's mouth as she saw the picturesque scene before her, seemingly straight out of a child's picture book.

A small clearing that had a brook trickling through the middle of it with butterfly's floating around, small bunches of flowers dotted the grass, and there was a blossoming fruit tree next to a small boulder, that sat at the edge of a small cliff, out of which the brook ran, pooling right under the cliff.

Another gasp came as Naruko started stripping.

"What are you doing?!"

"Going for a dip, care to join me?"

Hinata's face lit up in a dark blush.

"But I don't have a swim suit…"

"Neither do I."

Hinata looked the other way as Naruko took off her panties and tossed them onto the pile of her clothes and stepped into the pool, letting out a contented sigh as she sat down and the water covered her body.

"The water feels so niice…"

Naruko closed her eyes and relaxed, letting the cool water caress her body. A little while later she felt the water's ripples change and opened an eye to see a flushed Hinata join her in the water.

"So you finally decided to join me…"

"Y-Y-Yeah…"

The calm of the clearing swept over them, and all that was heard was the trickling of water and the swaying of the branches in the wind.

* * *

Several hours passed before she woke up, Hinata's face hovering over her's.

"School's out now, we should be heading back."

Naruko nodded and stretched, her body stiff from sleeping in the water.

"Why didn't you wake me up earlier?"

Hinata blushed and looked aside, "You looked so peaceful when you were sleeping. I didn't have the heart to wake you."

Naruko shook her head and got out of the pool, standing up and stretching again, her eyes looking up at the sky as she checked the position of the sun.

"You're an hour off Hinata-chan. School ended an hour ago."

"Oh… sorry Naruko-chan, apparently I'm no good at telling time by the sun." Hinata slouched in depression.

Naruko walked over to Hinata and hugged her friend.

"Hinata-chan, it's a skill and just like other skills, it takes time to master. Give it a while."

Hinata smiled slightly and returned the hug then turned and looked up at the sky.

"What will I tell my father?"

Nartuo's response was muffled as she was putting her shirt on.

"Let's spar."

Hinata frowned and turned and looked at her friend.

"I don't have time for that Naruto-chan, I have to figure out something to tell my father as for why I was late getting home."

Naruko turned to her as she finished straightening her shirt.

"Exactly, we spar some, then tell your father that we were training together. That way we tell him the truth."

Hinata's face light up with understanding, a smile forming on her lips.

"Naruko-chan, you keep that up and people won't believe your mask for much longer."

* * *

**_Down for maintenance _**


End file.
